Resonance
by Angel of Apathy
Summary: Post Exit Wounds, Captain John Hart is working at Torchwood. A chance encounter causes a lot of trouble- and lots of broken glass. Rated for language. Pairings: Janto, John/anyone - it is John, after all .
1. Smash

My first shot at writing for Torchwood

**My first shot at writing for Torchwood. To anyone who has read my other stories: firstly YAY I like it when that happens, and secondly, this is **_**completely **_**unconnected. None of that has happened for this story, and none of this has happened for my other stories. Right then. On with the story. **

**This is set after Exit Wounds, and after Journey's End. I've put in Captain John Hart, because he is supremely cool.**

**Disclaimer: if Torchwood was mine no one would ever see Captains Jack or John again. Ever. **

**Resonance**

Smash

Captain John Hart was enjoying this planet. Sure, it was a little more uptight than he was used to- he learnt fairly soon that walking around carry guns and a sword was a bad idea- but for the most part it was good. But it was so _slow. _He needed the danger, and couldn't get enough just travelling around. So he did the obvious thing: he went back to Cardiff and Torchwood. After all, that was where it would be easiest to find the danger that he craved.

……………

Of all the bad situations to be in, this was among the worst. Firstly; there was a very-pissed-off Weevil which was not looking like it was going to go easy, secondly; there was a young woman cornered by it, and thirdly; it was seriously pissing it down. It was times like these which made John wonder why the hell he was on this god-forsaken planet, and regret helping Torchwood- or what was left of it.

………………

Jess Smith was having a bad day. For starters, she was having a bad hair day. Then she got soaked in the rain on the way to the shops, all the time thinking about how she had recently lost her job. It wasn't fair that her job was axed as part of the NHS cost-cutting. She was OK for money, but that wasn't the point. To finally top of how bad things were going, she then got cornered in an alleyway by a _something _that looked hungry. There was an animal look in its eyes that she recognised from her gap year in Africa: dangerous, predatory.

"Don't move," said a man's voice. She obediently froze as still as possible. She could see him, behind the creature. Red jacket, a sword and two guns worn wild-west style, strapped to each leg. The creature shifted slightly, a couple of steps towards her. A flicker of fear spread through her, and the windowpanes rattled. Discarded beer bottles clinked against each other. _Shit, _she thought, _control it, dammit! Stop it before he notices. _The rattling spooked the creature, and it leapt towards her. Three things happened at once: the creature's claws ripped two long gashes in her side, everything made of glass in the alleyway shattered into fragments, and the man in the red jacket drew one of his guns and shot the creature, knocking it sideways. Jess's medical training kicked in, and she pressed down on both cuts. Fortunately they weren't deep, but they _hurt. _The man sprayed the creature with something, then came and crouched next to her.

"Did it get you?"

"It's not too bad. What was it?"

"We call them Weevils."

Jess pulled out a handkerchief, and used that to stop her side from bleeding. The man moved her hands aside gently to look at the slashes.

"I'm Captain John Hart," he said.

"Jess Smith, sorry I can't shake you hand."

"How did you do that to the glass?"

_Bugger._

"I… didn't?"

"I think you need to come with me to Torchwood."

What happened next was not anticipated by John at all. Moving faster than he had expected, she shoved him away, leapt up and darted away down the alley, disappearing into the rain.

_Great, _he thought, _escapee alien. This really is a bad day._

……………….

Jess ran. She slipped through the side-alleys and shortcuts that had become second nature to her now, after several years in the city. After finishing her medical degree she'd come back to her original home, where she hadn't lived for nearly twenty years. She'd lost the welsh accent, instead keeping a more mundane South-East England tone. She'd left her brown hair long, and always wore smoky black eyeliner round her deep-black eyes. Now, running from an unknown man in an alleyway, she wondered what the hell she'd gotten herself into. She'd kept her strange abilities hidden for so long that having someone at least guess about them made her feel strangely exposed. But she had a plan: keep hidden, and eventually they'll go away.

…………………

"How was she doing it?"

Back at Torchwood, there was a small meeting being held to decide what to do about the 'glass girl' as she'd been dubbed.

"How would I know, Jack?" After going round in circles of questions for about an hour John had given up civil answers and was being downright rude. He was saved from any more pointless questioning by a Weevil alert. Someone had been hurt badly.

……………………

Jess had a big problem. The morning after she'd run away from the mysterious Torchwood she'd got a phone call from the hospital: her brother had been admitted with severe injuries afflicted by some kind of wild animal. An organisation called Torchwood was withholding details. She couldn't just waltz in there, but she had to go- it was her little brother, she couldn't leave him. So she went, against her common sense.

………………

Several hours after that, the Torchwood team were just about to talk to the sister of their Weevil victim. Someone called Jess Smith. She was curled in the bedside chair, head down, when they walked in. She raised her head, and John suddenly said, "That's her!"

"Shit," she said. With only a few seconds to act in, she used her last option. She extended her arm and shielded herself with a forcefield.

**Get to find out more about Jess in the next chapter. Until then, review to keep me happy.**


	2. Too Delicate

Wow, two reviews

**Wow, reviews. They make me so happy (hint, hint). In this chapter we get some history on Jess. I'm also trying to develop John as less of the unfeeling bastard and more as someone with different ideas to what is conventional now. I am going to keep him as a slightly nutty, dangerous persona, though. It's more fun that way, don'tcha think?**

**Disclaimer: sure, I own Torchwood. Did you know that if you say 'orange' really fast it sounds like 'gullible'? (That was doing the rounds at my school for weeks. People are so dumb sometimes. And if you believe the orange thing you'll believe I really own Torchwood.)**

Too Delicate

It was a bizarre scene: four Torchwood employees facing a twenty-something-year-old. She looked studenty, wearing jeans and Converse, with dark, dreamers' eyes that were wide and scared. The forcefield was like a shimmering screen in the air. Curious, John reached out to it, regardless of the risk. It flexed slightly, like a thick plastic slab.

"Forcefield?"

Jess nodded. "Basic physical shield. No good against anything without actually mass."

"Pretty clever," said Jack.

"Thanks. I try my best."

"Now, if you will just close it down, we'll just take you with us-"

"Oh, no. I'm staying here."

"No you're not."

"I am. This is my brother, and he's hurt. I'm staying here until he recovers. And you can't stop me."

"Yeah we can."

"Go on then. Stop me."

There was something genuine in those eyes, not the usual lying look.

"Please," she said, and her voice took on a begging tone, "just until he wakes up."

………………

Jess was sitting slouched in her chair the next day, drinking something that definitely _wasn't _coffee, when the door opened and Jack walked in. _He likes to make and entrance,_ Jess noticed.

"I thought we agreed I didn't have to go until Luke wakes up."

"You don't. But I want to make sure you don't run away again, so every day you'll be getting a visitor."

"I never caught your name."

"Captain Jack Harkness. The gorgeous Welshman is Ianto, the woman is Gwen and the man in the red jacket is John. And you're Dr Jess Olivia Smith."

"You looked me up?"

"We wanted to know who we were dealing with."

"Well, you're going to get very bored. Sitting here every day." She sipped some more not-coffee, wrinkled her nose and said, "You don't know anyone who makes good coffee, do you?"

Jack grinned. "I'll pass this one on to Ianto."

……………

The day after, John had drawn the metaphorical short straw and was on Jess-watch. Only, when he turned up, she wasn't there. There was a nurse, and after a little flirting – that wasn't _strictly _necessary, but still – he found out she had last been seen going into the toilets, that were thankfully unisex. The last time he'd tried to go into a ladies loo he'd been attacked by several handbag-wielding women. Not an experience he'd like to repeat. He pushed in, and noticed the single locked door. She'd be in there.

……………

Jess recognised the feet outside her cubicle door. Red jacket guy… John, wasn't it?

"Come out of there," he said from outside.

"No. Piss off."

"Now, that's not nice."

"Go away. I'm not coming out."

"You are."

"Make me."

"If you insist." There was a scraping sound as the bolt moved back of its own accord, and the door swung open. "Never go anywhere without a magnet. Now, are you coming, or do I have to drag you out?"

"Leave me alone."

"Give me a good reason and I might."

The angry spark in her eyes faded like a dying star.

"Everything is wrong in my life. My parents died when I was twelve. Since then I've been in and out of counselling and various rehabs like they were hotels. I cleaned myself up enough to get a medical degree, and where was it got me? I'm unemployed. My brother is hurt and I can't do anything for him. And to top everything I'm in trouble with your secret-agency thing. So there are lots of reasons. Which do you want to use?"

John watched her carefully for a few moments. Calculating, thinking. She wasn't hiding to be difficult, or trying to run away. She was desperate, with life pressing down on her. He knew from the nurse that Jess'd gone in to the loos several hours ago. It must have all got too much for her. He was toughened, and he kept forgetting how fragile other people were, like delicate glass sculptures.

"You're right. Those are good reasons."

She seemed surprised by this unusual approach, but, contrary to popular belief, John did actually have _some_ people skills.

"It's just so hard sometimes. I have to keep up this happy, cheerful face on the outside, and then everything goes wrong again…"

"It feels like the universe is set against you, like you'll never be happy again."

She met his eyes, and behind the layers of carefully-constructed bad attitude there was some genuine concern. _He understands,_ she thought. _Not fake understanding, like most people, but __real__ understanding. Stuff like this has happened to him, too._ She got up from where she'd been sitting on the loo seat.

"Alright, fine. I'll move."

He smiled, a self-satisfied smile. Not to let him win too much of a victory, she added, "Bloody uncomfortable in there, anyway."

They walked back to Luke Smith's room, walking in step without even noticing it.

"Got a question." Jess said, breaking the silence.

"Jack and Ianto. They're the ones doing the nasty."

"_Really? _Wow. That wasn't my question, but good gossip! What I actually wanted to know why no one punches Jack for the incessant-flirting thing."

"Ah, now that is easy to explain. In the 51st century – when Jack and I are from – pheromones are a lot more powerful than the ones in this era. People never even see it coming."

"You're from the _51__st__ century?"_

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"Aside from the fact that's _300_ years in the _future?_"

"So? By my century time travel is possible… if not quite perfect."

Jess tried to tell if he was joking or not. Then she shrugged, and said, "So, what other gossip can you tell me about Torchwood?"

John grinned. Going against orders – not to tell anyone about Torchwood – and spilling other people's secrets. _Is it ever not fun?_ He wondered.

**Yeah, so as you may have guessed from the 'Jack and Ianto doing the nasty' bit, I'm a Janto shipper. But I will try to keep up the feeling that Gwen likes Jack, but he doesn't like her. **


	3. Testing, Testing

Disclaimer: I'm flattered that you think I'm responsible for Torchwood, but sadly I'm not

**Disclaimer: I'm flattered that you think I'm responsible for Torchwood, but sadly I'm not. Wouldn't that be great, though? As much Jack, John and Ianto as I could wish for…**

**Um, quick warning: there are mentions of Jack and Ianto doing… you know. But nothing even vaguely graphic. Still only PG sort of level. **

**This is where you get to find out why I called this story Resonance. Also, if you didn't know what resonance was you get to find out that, too. Resonance is real, not something I made up.**

Testing, Testing

Eight days later, on John's third turn at watching Jess, there was a new development. As he approached the room where Jess's brother was, he could hear a man singing. When he opened the door, Jess's brother was singing to himself, and Jess was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, where'd she go?"

"You're Captain John Hart? Jess said you might turn up. She said to give you this." Luke handed John a piece of paper. Unfolding it, John read what Jess had written.

_John, don't panic. I haven't done a runner. Or gone psycho again. As you might have noticed, Luke has woken up. I, however, need caffeine, so I've gone to buy myself some of the stuff they call coffee here. Ugh. Anyway, I'll be back soon, then you can take me to wherever Torchwood is. In the meantime, don't hit on my brother. Firstly; I have it on good authority he's planning on moving in with his boyfriend – yeah, he's got a boyfriend – and secondly; I'll break your neck if you try anything. Always beware overprotective big sisters. And you can ask Luke, I'm deceptively strong. See ya soon!_

_Jess._

"Is she deceptively strong?"

"Yeah. I still bear the scars of when I pushed her into the sandpit."

Jess breezed into the room, smiling. Her brother's recovery meant she was smiling properly for the first time since John had met her.

"Hi! Did this idiot give you the note?"

"Hey!"

"Yeah, I got it. And, I need to know, sandpit incident?"

"Long story. I'll tell you on the way. Listen, Luke, it's been great to catch up, but I need to run. Got stuff to do."

"You'll call me, won't you?"

"When I get a chance," she said, with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. John was good at reading people, and he could tell she was nervous. Despite everyone was Torchwood being very nice she was still not looking forward to having to go there.

"See you later, Luke. Try to keep out of trouble for once."

"I won't, Jess. Nice meeting you, Captain Hart."

Jess hugged her brother, and then followed John out of the hospital to the Torchwood SUV.

"Oh, that is one hell of a car. I can see you're big on secrecy, with 'Torchwood' written all over it and blue flashing lights everywhere."

"I tried telling Jack that, but he won't change it. And why are you so sarcastic all of a sudden?"

"Sorry. When I'm nervous I make sarky comments."

"You'll be fine. But don't flirt with Jack – it'll get you nothing but dirty looks from Ianto."

"I'll remember that."

………………

"Whoa. This is impressive. You have a serious base down here."

Jess looked around the Hub, taking in all the details. Myfanwy chose that moment to fly overhead.

"Oh, that is not a pterodactyl. No way."

"It's true. Get used to it; you'll be here for a few days."

Jack had joined them, as had Ianto and Gwen, eager to see Jess's first impressions. "Now," he said, "we just need to run some tests, see how you do the thing with the glass. You'll need to stay here until we're sure you're not a threat. No offence."

"None taken. It's your job, not something you have against me personally."

"Good then. Make yourself at home, ask if you need anything."

With that, Jack disappeared off to his office. Ianto smiled at her, and said, "Come on, I'll give you the guided tour."

Jess followed him, always looking, making sure she imprinted everything he said into her mind. After all, you could never have too much information. And she would go through what she'd learnt later, just in case she needed to escape. Couldn't be too careful was her new motto.

……………

The next day, Jess was doing Zen breathing when John got in. Gwen was late – as usual – and Ianto hadn't actually left the night before.

"What are you doing?"

"Dancing the tango," she replied.

"What are you nervous about today?"

"Test Day, remember? And I wouldn't sit there if I were you."

"Why?" He'd been about to sit in one of the workstation chairs.

"Last night, Jack and Ianto sort of… well –" She broke off, looked around, and then got up from where she'd been sitting on the floor and whispered in his ear.

"Even_ I_ find that wrong. And that is a first for me." John shuddered. _That is rough. Seriously, it shouldn't be allowed. Still, I'm curious…_

"Out of the pair of them, who tops?"

"Ew! Perv!"

He just smiled, that infuriating smile that was extremely sexy and so irritating at the same time. "You know you want to tell me really."

"… Ianto."

"Oh, I am never going to let Jack live that down."

"Tease him all you want, but please, _please _don't tell him how you know."

"You think I'd do that to you, darling?"

"Yes."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

Ianto chose that moment to walk past. Jess held her breath, biting her lip to stop herself from laughing.

"What's she doing?" asked Ianto.

"The tango, apparently. I think she doesn't want to be disturbed."

"You want coffee?"

"Thanks, yeah. Jess?"

Jess managed to nod, and thankfully Ianto walked away to start filling the coffee orders for the day. Jess watched him go, then let out the breath she'd been holding.

"That was the single hardest thing I've ever done, including med school degrees."

"You owe me now."

Jack stuck his head over the railing above them, and yelled, "Hey, you two, test time. Show her to the autopsy bay, John."

"Autopsy bay? That's a bit worrying."

"Don't worry, we only dissect you if we think you're a threat."

"Don't tease her John, it's not nice."

"Yeah, cos I worry about being _nice."_

"There's a first time for everything."

Jack disappeared from view again, and John looked at Jess.

"You ready?"

"Hell no. Lead the way."

……………

Being a doctor – albeit an unemployed doctor – Jess wasn't worried by the blood samples and x-rays being taken. After it was done Jack told her to entertain herself while they were processing the results. After watching Myfanwy for several minutes, and fidgeting a lot, Jack took pity on her and said she could go outside if she took Gwen with her. They chatted happily, Jess was glad to get out in the fresh air. When Gwen's phone rang, and the caller ID showed it was Torchwood, Jess knew the tests must have been processed. Gwen answered the call, listened, said 'yeah' or 'no' occasionally, and then hung up.

"Test results in. Are you going to be OK with this?"

Jess thought about it. She could be about to discover that the one thing she never even thought she couldn't depend on was not at all what she believed it was. _No, I'm not going to be OK. _

"Sure. I'll be fine."

……………

"Well, the tests show you are one hundred per cent human. Which means we have a problem."

"Really? I'd have thought that was a good thing."

Everyone had gathered in the meeting room, where Jess's test results were displayed on the screens.

"Think, Jess." Jack tried to find a reason for it all. "What _exactly _can you do with the glass?"

Jess had wondered this several years ago, and so after several experiments had formed an explanation.

"Do you know about resonation?"

Gwen and Ianto looked confused. Jack and John looked slightly less confused. None of them knew where this was going. Only two of them had heard of resonation before.

"Well, essentially, it's that everything has a certain sound that matches it. I'm not an expert, but the idea is easy to explain. If you hit a certain note, you make the substance with that pitch vibrate, and it's called resonating. If you get that note loud enough the substance vibrates fast enough to, say, shatter glass."

"That's what you do?"

"That's what I do. I can resonate most things a little bit, but glass comes naturally to me, and I can't break other materials. Even getting other things to vibrate is an effort."

There was a pause while everyone absorbed this, and then John said, "Show us."

Jack looked over at him sharply. "No! It could be dangerous."

"Oh, come on, we all want to see it."

"It's not dangerous." _Not normally, anyway._

"Are you sure?"

"The worst thing that's ever happened was that I broke a couple of windows. I swear."

"We don't have any windows."

"John, no. You know the rules: no experimenting in the Hub."

John grinned when Jack said 'experimenting', and then had to duck a hail of pens from the other Torchwood members. Clearly they were sick of innuendo. Jess couldn't blame them. She'd known him for less than two weeks and it was getting annoying.

"Seriously, though –"

"You can be serious!?"

"Shut up Jack. Seriously, a demonstration would be useful. Might help us understand more about this."

"You actually _can _be serious, John. That's a big step for you. We should have a party."

"I think it's a good idea."

"Ianto! Traitor!"

"Sorry, but I do. We need to see it under controlled conditions to understand this better."

"I agree with them."

"Gwen!"

Jess was getting bored of watching the others argue, so she took executive action. She grabbed a glass from the middle of the table, putting it in front of her, making enough noise for the others to take notice. She grinned. Watching other people's reactions to what she could do was always fun.

"Watch and learn, kids."

**That was resonance – or as much as I could remember about resonance – in a nutshell. Until next chapter, review to make me happy. And, because for once I know what's going to happen in the next few chapters, here is a sneek preview:**

The shattered glass lay everywhere. Jess turned slowly. To find four guns pointed at her head. Adrenaline spiked through her again, but now she had nowhere to run to. But what scared her the most was the cold looks in the eyes behind the guns. Nice as they had been, Torchwood were ruthless with threats. And that was what she'd become.


	4. Going Wrong

Dying to know what all that was about at the end of the last chapter

**Dying to know what all that was about at the end of the last chapter? Wondering since when I wrote such long chapters (Testing, Testing was just over four pages on Word.)? Thinking about what Jack and Ianto could have been doing that made even the infamous Captain John Hart squirm? Well, read on, and some of that may become clear (although not the second or third things.).**

**Disclaimer: HAHAHAHA you actually think I ever have a shot of owning Torchwood? Strange person.**

Going Wrong

The shattered glass lay everywhere. Jess turned slowly, to find four guns pointed at her head. Adrenaline spiked through her again, but now she had nowhere to run to. But what scared her the most was the cold looks in the eyes behind the guns. Nice as they had been, Torchwood were ruthless with threats. And that was what she'd become. The red mists of anger were lifting slowly, and she saw the destruction around her for the first time. Glass shards glittered around her feet. The bar was wrecked. _What did I do? How did this happen?_

The Torchwood team had spread out in classic military formation, and there was clearly no way out. _God, what have I got myself into?_ Now Jess understood why the alien she'd met, three years ago, had been so afraid of Torchwood. As nice as they seemed, they were deadly. They were watching Jack, waiting for him to make a decision. Obviously he had, because now he spoke.

"John, take her back to Torchwood. Keep her under guard _constantly _and put her in the cells. Keep her away from anything glass."

The rest of the team stayed silent, and John stepped forwards. Keeping his gun trained on her, he grabbed her wrists. He was strong, and even though she twisted she was held firm. There was to be no escape.

……………

When the cell door locked behind her the last shreds of her self-control were destroyed. The thick plastic barely even shuddered as she banged on it, desperate to get out. John watched her through the wall for a few seconds, before leaving without a word. Normally in situations like this Jess would shut out the world and find solace inside her head, but now when she closed her eyes all she could do was relive the past few hours, where everything had gone wrong.

…………………

It had started innocently. After demonstrating her power on the glass, they had asked her if she had any theory about why she could do it. And that had taken her back to when she'd got the power, back to memories best forgotten. She didn't want to tell them, didn't want them to know, but it was the reason behind how she could have such powers. It had been thirteen years ago, when she was twelve, the night her parents died.

…………………

It had been her fault. All of it, the car crash had been her fault. It was her fault they were in the ambulance, her fault the driver wasn't watching the road, her fault she was the only survivor. It had started in their holiday home garden. Glowing gold light had suddenly appeared, like a fracture in the universe. Jess had been too close, and somehow, for some reason, the rift energy had channelled into her, leaving her permanently connected to the rift. The power was stronger then that it had ever been, too much for her to handle, and she'd collapsed. Her parents had been in the ambulance that was rushing her to hospital when some kind of backlash in the rift caused the golden light to pour out of her. This had distracted the driver, and the he hadn't seen the oncoming car in time. The rift had shielded Jess, but everyone else had been killed. All her fault. She hadn't wanted to remember any of it, but they forced her to go back. They didn't accept it, made her keep going over it. Then she snapped. Rift energy surged through her connection, and the air was filled with a crushing wall of sound. Immune inside her forcefield, Jess had fled while they writhed, clutching their ears. She'd run all the way to a bar, where she stopped to collect her thoughts. When the rugby-player type bloke at the bar started hitting on her, she'd lashed out, and before she knew it there was a full scale bar brawl going on. Torchwood put a stop to it, and that was where the past caught up with the present, and left her trapped in a cell with wild aliens for company, scared and alone. It was a long time until she could get to sleep.

…………………

After what felt like ten minutes sleep, Jess was woken by someone banging on the clear plastic wall. She opened her eyes but didn't turn her head; just lay there looking at the ceiling.

"Hey!" Jack wouldn't let it go. She rolled her head slowly, keeping her face expressionless. _Don't let them see anything. Don't let them in._

"Get up."

Harsh, short orders. _No emotions. Keep it all hidden, shut it in. don't let the fear and pain show._

"I said get up! On your feet, now!"

Jess considered if it was worth it, to obey. But disobeying would only make the situation worse. She rolled onto her front and scrambled up. She stepped towards the plastic screen, meeting Jack's eyes. _Empty. Hide it all. _

"You're going to the interrogation room. Don't try to struggle."

"Would there be any point?" Her voice is thin, quiet, and a tiny touch of the emotions she'd been trying to hide crept in. Jack searched her face, looking for a sign that he wasn't imagining it. But her mind had gone into lockdown, shutting in all feelings.

"No. There's no point."

…………………

Jess looked round the interrogation room in mild detached interest. The only thing that struck her as vaguely important was the lack of glass. They were taking no chances with her. Jack leaned across the table, intimidating on purpose.

"What do you have to say?"

"What do you want me to say? That I'm _sorry?_ That I won't do it again? That I'll _clean up the bar?_ No! You want me to threaten you, to say I'm here to destroy the world, to say I'm going to kill you all. You want a reason to get rid of me for good! Don't you?"

He looked slightly taken aback, but Jess knew she was right. What she was now was threatening, but not threatening enough to warrant freezing her or shooting her. She was a pain in the arse for Torchwood at the moment, and it was fun. But it was dangerous, and she had to make sure she didn't push it.

"Why did you escape?" Dangerously calm. A warning: don't push me to the edge, because the results will not be good for you.

"I got scared, and I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't even _mean_ to try and get out, but then I just needed to get out, and I couldn't stop…" Ironically, it was when she said the word 'stop' that she had to stop. Rift spike. Normally she felt them as a hum, like a musical note deep inside her, but this time it was different. She felt the rift fracture, splintering, shockwaves of energy ripping through her connection. It burned, like fire trapped in her head. The edges of her vision grew dark. Then there was a ripple in the air and a man with a gun was standing there with them.

"Spot on target. Now, if you wouldn't mind giving us a lift out of here, darling…"

"What the hell?"

"Guys, we need backup in the interrogation room NOW!"

"What the hell?"

"Darling, lift out o here now, please."

"Who are you?"

"I'm kidnapping you, darling. Now…"

He moved quickly, wrapping and arm round her and holding the gun to her head. He seemed to acknowledge Jack for the first time.

"Don't look for her. Sorry for taking away your fun, but needs must…"

And with that they disappeared in a flash of rift energy. Jack swore in several languages. Everything was going wrong today.

**No sneaky peek this time, cos I can't think of enough detail for the next chapter. Read and review, please! **


	5. Kidnap Survival Tactics

Been listening to James Marsters – Captain John Hart, if you didn't know that already – singing

**Been listening to James Marsters – Captain John Hart, if you didn't know that already – singing. He's really good! Man, do I love YouTube. **

**Disclaimer: OK, so there's the big, bad BBC, and then there's me, a schoolgirl. Who do you think owns Torchwood?**

Kidnap Survival Tactics

Rift travel was, Jess decided, not a lot of fun. It felt a little bit like being run over by a truck, and then being hit round the head with something hard. In the time it took her to recover she was shoved into a cell not unlike the one at Torchwood by the man who'd kidnapped her. She got her breath back and then asked,

"Why are you doing this?"

"Simple. I want to destroy Torchwood, and leave the Earth undefended for the rest of my race. They'll come looking for you, and one by one I'll eliminate them all."

"Why didn't you kidnap one of them?"

"It's just so much less dramatic, don't you think?"

_Just what I need: a psychopath who likes to make a scene. Why, oh why, did this have to happen to me?_

…………………

"We have a big problem."

"Technically we have several big problems, Jack. Kidnappers with rift-harnessing technology, a missing person who may or may not be an alien, and rift spikes spread around the whole of the south-east of Wales."

"You are so helpful, John. Just shut up, for once."

"Touchy."

Torchwood were gathered in the meeting room. They were at a dead end with the vanishing kidnapper and kidnapped maybe-alien. John wasn't helping – but he never did, so they were used to it. But now he surprised them all by actually having a good idea.

"That guy used the rift to kidnap her, yes? So if we check out the locations of rift spikes she might be there."

"Who are you and what did you do with the real John Hart?"

"I thought we didn't have time for jokes?"

"Alright. There's three locations, so Gwen and Ianto can take one together, I take one and John takes one."

"Why are Ianto and I together?"

"Because it's safer to go in groups and John can look after himself. Or get killed, either way it's better to have you two together."

"It's nice to know I mean so much to you."

"Shut up. Let's go, guys."

……………

Jess was contemplating just how boring being kidnapped was when she heard shots. _They're here. The destruction of Torchwood begins. I'm killing more people. Shit, I thought I had stopped that, shifted the balance the other way by becoming a doctor. _There were scuffling sounds, like people fighting, and them one more gunshot and a lot of swearing.

_That sounds like John._

It was. The kidnapper dragged him in, and shoved him unceremoniously into the cell with Jess. The kidnapper pointed the gun at her, and said,

"Don't move until the door is shut."

The second the lock clicked, Jess dropped to John's side.

"Are you OK?"

"No! He shot me! Do you think I'm OK?"

"Stop moving around and let me look at it."

"Why?"

"I'm a doctor, remember? Now shut up and let me sort this out."

For once, he did as he was told. He worked on screening out the pain. It wasn't by any means his first time at getting shot, he had coping tactics.

"What are you doing here?" Jess asked, after making sure the bullet hadn't hit anything vital.

"Looking for you. Jack's not happy."

"Hey, it's not _my _fault I was kidnapped."

"Jack's not happy about that either, if it's any consolation."

"I wish you weren't here."

"Why is everyone so mean to me?"

"No, I mean I wish Torchwood wasn't here. That's what he wants. He wants to wipe out Torchwood to leave the Earth undefended."

"He told you his plan? Rookie mistake."

"I'm sorry. This is all my fault. Again. It's always all my fault."

"I blame the psycho, not you."

They sat for a few minutes, leaning against the wall in silence. Then Jess thought to ask something that had been bothering her.

"Why don't Gwen and Ianto trust you?"

"You noticed that?"

"Yeah. I also noticed Gwen like Jack and is slightly jealous of Ianto, and guilty because she'd married."

"Observant. You know those 'terrorist attacks' a few months ago?"

"Yeah. Nightmare at the hospital. So many people were hurt and we lost all life support systems."

"Well, that was me. I had a bomb molecularly bonded to my skin and I had to destroy Jack's life for his insane little brother. And two of their team members died in the attacks."

"Wow. It's amazing they haven't hit you yet."

"Oh, they have."

"Can I see where the bomb was?"

He stretched out his wrist, and she looked with a sort of professional interest at the scar tissue that had formed there.

"Youch. That looks like it was painful."

"Getting it off was the worst part."

Jess grimaced in sympathy. Clearly the skin had been partly torn off.

"Hey," John said suddenly, "you want to know a great way to irritate kidnappers?"

"You've done this before, haven't you?"

"Yes, and driving kidnappers crazy is very fun."

………………

Jack, Gwen and Ianto had all, of course, found nothing. They had agreed to regroup at the Hub, and they were all there and starting to get worried about John. Well, not worried as such, more worried about what he might be doing. Or who. Still, he'd been taking work at Torchwood quite seriously – privately they all thought it was to make up for the havoc he'd caused, even if he hadn't done it of his own free will. And if something had, against all odds, actually got the better of him then it would be bad. Being an intergalactic conman taught you good survival skills. He wasn't answering his comms, and hadn't spoken to anyone for several hours. Jack knew he could look after himself, but if whoever had kidnapped Jess had got to him then that would only end badly for the kidnappers…

………………

"Ten paces by eight paces."

"Diagonal?"

Jess paced across the cell. "Twelve paces. Why are we measuring the cell?"

"Pick eight, ten or twelve."

"Why?"

"Just do it, you'll see."

"Ten."

"Right. Now, pace up and down the ten-pace side."

"Why? And if you don't give me a straight answer this time I'll practice my karate on you."

John grinned his usual smug grin, but decided that the look in Jess's eyes was murderous enough to not push her too far.

"It is so, so annoying. The kidnappers will be begging us to leave after a few hours."

"And you'd know this how?"

"This isn't my first time being kidnapped or being the kidnapper."

"You have a weird life."

"You don't know the half of it, babe."

"Knock it off with the babe thing."

"Darling? Sweetheart? Angel?"

"Jess. And just remember you have a hole in your shoulder. Don't make me hurt you even more."

"Promises, promises."

**I have no idea if pacing really is irritating to most people, but it sure as hell drives me mad. Review to make my day. It's been raining here, I need something to make the sun shine.**


	6. Escapology

For some reason I'm listening to Shrek music

**For some reason I'm listening to Shrek music. I have no idea why, but it's quite good. Oh, and something I meant to say earlier but I forgot: if Jess gets too Mary-Sue-ish (as my last OC got a bit Mary-Sue) please, please tell me in a review and then yell at me until I fix it. **

**Disclaimer: oh, you must have worked this one out by now!**

Escapology

Almost exactly an hour after John and Jess had started pacing the kidnapper came to talk to them.

"Stop pacing!"

"Why should we?" asked John. Jess decided to let him sort this one out, as he had done it all before.

"Because it is driving me mad!"

"That was the general idea."

"I'll shoot you!"

"You already did."

The kidnapper snarled, going for his gun. Fortunately the thick plastic screen was pretty tough, and he stopped before actually shooting either of them. Tension crackled in the air. Eventually the kidnapper turned away, dropping his gun onto a table just outside the cell.

"That's just annoying. I can _see _the gun, but I can't _shoot_ him."

"You're a very violent man."

"I know."

"Just as long as you're aware…"

Jess leaned back against the wall, bored already. _Bored, bored, bored, bored, kill kidnapper, bored, bored, bored, strangle someone, bored, bored, bored, kill John if he grins like that again, bored, bored. _

"Bored?" John asked, grinning. Jess gave him a death look, and he just grinned even more. _Refrain from strangling John. Will only end in tears. No matter how tempting it is. _

"You're looking at me strangely."

_Resist. Resist. It will only piss him off. _

"Are you thinking about killing me?"

"How did you know that?"

"People look at me like that a lot."

"You know, I'm starting to see why."

"Harsh."

"It would help if you didn't make it your lifetime goal to be as irritating as possible, all the time."

"Hmm, feisty. I like that."

"Don't try it."

"Worth a shot."

He was close to her, and she remembered why she'd been trying to keep away from him: 51st century pheromones, and she was sure he was doing that on purpose. As he shifted, she caught the first wave of them: he smelt like the African desert; hot, dry grass and sand; and also like sandalwood and cinnamon. _Bugger. You should not have let him get this close._ There was a hint of pine there, too. He was watching her, and when she raised her eyes he smiled a slow, almost predatory grin. The look in his eyes was clear: _Gotcha. _

_Damn those pheromones._

He was only doing it for fun. Part of the pheromones was a natural, constant flow, but he put that little bit more in when he wanted the full effect. He was close enough to smell her, now. Strawberries, oranges and ginger. Interesting, because spices were a common thread in 51st century pheromones, not like this backwater era where people barely even had pheromones.

"You don't have any 51st century blood in you, do you?"

She looked away again, but he could hear her breath hitching slightly. He'd almost forgotten how little resistance people from this era had to pheromones.

"It's possible. My dad said he was a traveller, before he met my mum."

It was hard for Jess to think, to form coherent sentences. The desert was all around her, and every time she breathed in it attacked her again. John was close enough for her to hear his breathing, hear his heartbeat, _feel_ his breathing…

If there was one thing Jess would always keep in mind, it was never doubt someone from the 51st century when they tell you about their skill as a kisser. They are not kidding. All she could feel was John's mouth on hers, the plastic wall against her back and lean, toned muscle under soft cotton beneath her fingers. Jess had kept anyone who became interested in her at arms' length for a long time, because she didn't want to hurt anyone else with the rift-power. Now, feeling like she had been struck by lightening, she craved the human contact. There was no love, nothing more than mutual attraction and pheromones. But it felt _good._ Eventually they pulled apart, both breathing hard. Jess tried to breathe in some clean air, but the only air she got was saturated with pheromones. They made the blood fizz in her veins, and she swallowed. John was wearing a satisfied, smug grin, and she really would have liked to punch him for it. But before she could hit him – or kiss him – there was a loud bang as a bullet struck the plastic screen about two feet from where they were standing.

………………

"Any progress finding John or Jess?"

"Sorry Jack, none so far."

"OK, keep trying, Gwen. Ianto, any rift activity to report?"

"No, none. How would that help find them?"

"Jess is linked to the rift. There's a small chance that she may inadvertently cause a rift spike. So keep watching."

"Jack, why are we going to such trouble to find them? Jess is a threat anyway, and John… after what he did…"

"Jess may be a threat but she was under our protection before she was kidnapped, and we still need to protect her. John… even after what he did, he's not evil, and he's gotten me out of worse scrapes than this before. I can't give up on him."

"That was in the past, though. Does it really count now?"

"It always counts. Time Agency moral code. Favours stand through any amount of time until they're repaid. So keep looking."

……………………

Jess nearly jumped out of her skin when the bullet thudded into the screen, cracking it, powering nearly all the way through. John barely even reacted, but it took him by surprise as well. The kidnapper was wielding the gun – one of _his _guns in fact, bastard – and had a bad look in his eyes. The reason it was bad was because it was dangerously insane. John had seen that look before, in serial killers' eyes. This could get nasty. Jess seemed to have hidden inside herself, so he focused his attention on the psychopath pointing the gun at him. That screen wouldn't hold more than two or three shots before it shattered completely.

"I was going to wait to kill you, kill all of Torchwood together. But I'm bored with waiting for them to find you. So I'll just start by killing you both now."

"Wouldn't it be more fun to kill everyone together?"

"It'll be fun just killing you. No need to do it all at the same time."

"No need to kill us at all."

Jess chose this moment to rejoin the conversation with an extremely odd non-sequitur.

"You cracked the screen."

"What?"

"Look. Big scratch. You broke it."

"Yes, I know. I shot it."

"That's given me an idea."

"Jess, if your idea is 'shoot the looney' it doesn't work without a gun."

"Actually my idea is better than that."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. As long as it works."

The room rippled. It didn't look like it rippled, it actually moved, like a wave passing through the walls. Dust fell from the ceiling. The plastic screen cracked, white lines frosting its' surface. There was a second pulse shortly after the first, like a very small, localised earthquake.

"What the hell?" asked the kidnapper, a question that was silently seconded by John.

"I can make things resonate. It only stands to reason I should be able to make them move the way I want them to."

The whole room shifted, and cracks appeared in the ceiling above the kidnapper. The kidnapper looked up and opened his mouth to swear, but before he could the ceiling collapsed on him and the plastic screen shattered completely.

"Jess, how did you do that?"

"Rift power, baby. Now, what say we get out of here before the whole building comes down on our heads?"

John stepped over to where his weapons had been left and picked them up, buckling them back on to his belt.

"Feel better now?" asked Jess, grinning.

"Yes thanks."

The building groaned as its' weakened structure started to give way. The rift opened, and Jess and John escaped through it as concrete started to fall.

………………

"Jack, there's been a major rift flare at the same co-ordinates John went to check out."

"OK, let's go check it out. God I hope they're OK."

**Where will Jess and John end up? Find out in the final chapter of 'Resonance', coming soon to a near you! (Um, yeah, I've had too much sugar today. Just ignore me, and leave a review.)**


	7. Job Prospects

Last chapter of this story, but I will continue with this as a series, so keep an eye out

**Last chapter of this story, but I will continue with this as a series, so keep an eye out!**

**Disclaimer: It's the end of the frigging story. If you still think I own Torchwood I'll just let you keep on living in your own little world. **

Job Prospects

Jess tasted dirt, and heard the singing sound of the rift fading. She rolled over onto her back, and had a moment of 'that cloud looks pretty' before her brain kicked in and she sat up, looking around at the empty field. Well, not quite empty, if you counted John who was also sitting on the ground muttering something about 'bloody rift'.

"Where are we?"

He pressed some buttons on his wrist strap, frowned at it and said, "Ah."

"Good 'ah' or bad 'ah'?"

"Depends how you look at it."

Jess gave her best death look.

"Well, we're a few miles outside Cardiff, and the good news is we haven't crossed our own timeline."

"And the bad news?"

"We've missed two weeks."

"Oops. My fault?"

"Yeah, but seeing as it's your first time I'm glad to see this side of the century."

"How does that thing know when we are, anyway?"

"I'm not sure."

"How can you not know?"

"How does a mobile phone work?"

"Touché."

Jess flopped back down, looking at the sky above her. After a few days in various cells she was glad to see the sky again. A mixture of adrenaline and relief coursed through her, leaving her euphoric, and she started laughing. It was verging on hysterical, but good hysterical.

"You sound like a maniac when you laugh."

"I am a maniac," Jess replied, face dead straight. She scrambled up onto her feet and looked around at the empty countryside. "How the hell are we going to get home?"

"We used the rift. Torchwood'll pick up the flare and we can catch a lift with them."

"Suits me, I'm not walking back. Speaking of getting a lift from Torchwood, can you hear a car?"

"No."

"I can. The rift gives me sharper-than-usual senses; it's great for eavesdropping on neighbours."

John looked at her like she was mad. Then he heard the car too and decided to drop it. It was the Torchwood SUV, of course. It was probably Jack driving, seeing as it was going very fast in not a very straight line. It slewed to a stop near them and Jack leapt out, closely followed by Gwen and Ianto. Without a word he stepped forward and pulled Jess and John into a hug.

"We thought you'd been crushed to death."

"Nah. Rift kid here got us out."

"Excuse me? Rift kid? Call me that again and I'll send you through the rift into the sun!"

"Sorry, but I do have to be annoying all the time, you said so yourself."

"Sorry to break up this charming conversation, but she _opened the rift?_ All by herself? And took you here?"

"Yes, yes and yes. And crushed a gunman to death while collapsing a building."

"Yeah, we found him. Nasty."

"Sorry about that. And sorry I missed the timeline by two weeks."

"You got through the rift without any form of vortex manipulator and got as close as two weeks. You should be asking for your medal! John, what happened to your shoulder?"

Jack had noticed the makeshift bandaging on John's shot wound.

"I got shot. Jess patched me up."

"Pretty good job. Are you looking for a new job, Jess?"

"Yeah, why?"

"We need a new doctor. And I think you've more than proven you're not a threat."

…………………

Jess was quiet on the way back to the hub. She had seen the look Gwen had given her. She knew that she was replacing one of their friends, and that she was resented for that. Ianto, at least, was nice to her. He seemed to take the opinion that she was just an addition to the team, not a replacement. Hopefully Gwen would see that soon. When they arrived at the hub, Jess decided to stop John whining about his shoulder – funny, how he'd barely complained before but now in front of Jack he tried to draw as much attention to it as possible – by getting it properly patched up. Then she slipped out, just to get out and think. After hours of aimless wandering she found her way back home. In a few days she'd gone from on the run, to kidnapped, to part of a secret organisation. She thought of what she'd seen of Torchwood. They were sometimes brutal, but they were good. She smiled. _New job,_ she thought. _New life. New everything._ _I can't wait._

**Jess will return in 'Vengeance', as soon as I can be bothered to write some of it. Enjoy! Bye bye for now, Angel.**


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